The American Diet

Words: 735
Pages: 3
Open Document
In the United States, 65% of adults are either obese or overweight. Obesity is often caused by an unhealthy diet and one of the most prominent unhealthy diets is currently the American Diet. The American Diet is a growing epidemic which causes an array of diseases and problems. The American Diet is an important social issue. Some of the main aspects of this diet are what are the characteristics of the American Diet, what are are the effects of the American Diet, and how can people prevent the American Diet. The American Diet has many characteristics that help define its structure and and the foods generally associated with it. One of the main identifying features of the American Diet is its history and origin. The American Diet has changed …show more content…
One of the effects that is caused by this diet is cancer. A study by the University of Texas showed that high levels of sugar in a normal diet, similar to the amounts in the typical American Diet, caused lung and breast cancer in mice. Cancer is the second largest cause of death in the U.S. and one third of those deaths are caused by diet. The American Diet also helps to weaken the immune system. The immune system helps protect the body against disease and infection. While eating the foods on this diet, humans are also more likely to get colon and prostate cancer because of their weakened immune system. Another effect of this diet are various diseases. In the United States alone, over 64 million people suffer from cardiovascular disease due to an improper diet. People are also more likely to contract type II diabetes because of the high amounts of sugar in this diet. They also have higher blood pressure and have an elevated risk of heart disease and stroke. In conclusion, the American Diet causes many types of …show more content…
One way people can substitute this diet is by eating a more healthy diet. An example of this kind of diet is the Prudent Diet. The Prudent Diet is composed of fruits, vegetables, unprocessed grains, beans, nuts, fish and low-fat dairy. This diet helps guard against heart disease and stroke, making it almost an opposite of the American Diet. It also helps lower fat, cholesterol, and body mass index (BMI). It lowers the risk of cancer and diabetes. This diet also helps with weight loss. One of the main principles of this diet is that the quality of the food matters. Another way people can prevent this diet is lowering their intake of unhealthy foods. Limiting a person’s amount of foods filled with starch or sugar can help with lowering their intake of unhealthy foods. Therefore, there are many alternatives to the American Diet. In conclusion, humans can help prevent the American Diet in several ways.
The American Diet is an issue in our community today that demands serious thought. The American diet has many different characteristics, and the effects of this range go from obesity to heart disease. Eating smaller amounts of problem foods and changing the diet altogether are the two prominent alternatives. It seems that the idea of the American Diet gives people a moral dilemma. Everyone has to choose whether to put their health in jeopardy by eating what they love, or eat healthier. Are you willing to put your life on
Show More

Related Documents: The American Diet

African American Diets

the famous American diet. Over the years Africans The average American diet consists of fats and sugars. In the past Africans were known for eating fresh home-grown ingredients that contained little fat and sugar. The obesity rate was low and so were the health problems. Now there diets took a sharp turn in the opposite direction and they developed American eating trends. The American diet consists of nothing but sugar, carbs, and fats. Americans are known to have unhealthy diets. They also have…

Words 947 - Pages 4

Latin American Diets

The Typical Diets Throughout Latin America All throughout Latin America, their typical foods and diets are both similar and different in many different ways. They all stem from their natives roots, and their colonizers roots, and the different foods that are easily grown there. In all of which, have combined to make each and every Latin American country’s unique cuisine. There are many Latin American countries to research, but only three were studied. They are Argentina, Chile, and Puerto Rico.…

Words 1098 - Pages 5

Abbreviate Standard American Diet

Hippocrates famously said, “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” Sadly, most Americans do not live by this standard anymore. Have you ever wondered how unhealthy food truly affects your health? “The food we eat gives our bodies the ‘information’ and materials they need to function properly. If we don't get the right information, our metabolic processes suffer and our health declines. If we get too much food, or food that gives our bodies the wrong instructions, we can become overweight…

Words 1268 - Pages 6

Diet Soda Research Paper

The Effects of Diet Soda on Weight Loss Despite the fact that diet soda is marketed as an easy way to help people lose weight, there appears to be very little evidence that supports that diet soda actually helps with weight loss. The fact that obesity is a growing problem in this country does not make sense when one considers the ever expanding range of healthy inexpensive food items, research done into smart eating, and easy access to health professionals. Questions abound around this topic including…

Words 1363 - Pages 6

Gods: Nutrition and Health Essay

A healthy diet and lifestyle go a long way towards meeting that goal. We all know that the challenge each day is to eat healthy and get adequate physical activity, given the many conveniences we have. That's why it's important for us to learn about the benefits of a healthy diet and lifestyle for the prevention of many chronic diseases down the line. "Food is like a pharmaceutical compound that affects the brain," said Fernando Gómez-Pinilla, a UCLA professor of neurosurgery and physiological science…

Words 2001 - Pages 9

Why Is America Unhealthy

America's food so unhealthy? Has it ever been healthy? American food is so unhealthy it causes 900 deaths a day. Diet related deaths outnumber the number of deaths from smoking, and about half of the U.S. deaths are from heart problems from the horrible diet. Heart diseases are the #1 cause of death in the world. Heart diseases from bad diets cause 678,000 deaths a year. On average, about 42.4% of Americans are obese. There are 341,541,362 Americans and 494,987 are obese. Most of the unhealthyness comes…

Words 942 - Pages 4

Essay on Who is Responsible for American Obesity

Who is Responsible for American Obesity? An Annotated Bibliography Ursurla L Waller ENG 122: English Composition II Dr. Pal- Agrawal 2015 Feb 5 Abstract For this class, I have chosen the research topic “Is the American diet responsible for the adult obesity epidemic in the United States?” For this topic, I will argue that an individual’s diet in America, contributed to by both societal influence and the existence of Food Deserts, is due to the foods consumed in ones culture as accessible. These…

Words 1256 - Pages 6

Forks Over Knives Essay

Over Knives, it is made clear the American diet is filled with damaging foods that have a detrimental toll on the human body. The film aims to show how a numerous amount of Americans are affected by all kinds of diseases including obesity, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, hypertension, bone diseases and osteoporosis. These diseases are just a handful of the many different ones that Americans fall victim to. Scene one reveals the reason is because the American diet is filled with unhealthy foods including…

Words 1895 - Pages 8

English Comp C456 Essay

And the general populous continues to be misinformed by government agencies regarding what a normal, healthy diet, should be, as well as what a balanced diet looks like. Eating a low-carb high-fat, or ketogenic, diet of high fat, adequate protein and low carbohydrates can provide many health benefits as compared to the alternative of an unhealthy diet. Research suggests that a ketogenic diet builds a healthier body than…

Words 3964 - Pages 16

The Movie King Corn

The standard American diets that we continue to eat from generation to generation is the greatest problem with the American health. This diet, which consists of high protein animal product, high fructose corn processed products is the main cause of the downfall of American health and wealth. For example, increased health problems, increased health care costs, and climate change are all caused in part by standard American diet. Due to that reason, all the Americans should shift their diet to plant –based…

Words 1012 - Pages 5